Preparing for the Next Black Swan Event

On April 1, Aclaimant’s Chief Risk Architect, Gary Pearce, presented a webinar about preparing for the next “black swan” event. The webinar, the latest in a series recently launched as part of the Aclaimant Knowledge Network, elaborated on Gary’s recent article as published in Propertycasualty360.com. That article is available here (free registration may be required).  

During the webinar, Gary explained that organizations have been hesitant to prepare for black swan events - meaning extremely severe and extraordinary events that are often unforeseen - because of their low likelihood and highly varying circumstances. Moreover, black swans tend to arise outside the organization, which may support the perception that they are uncontrollable. However, by concentrating on consequences rather than causation or origination, the impact of black swans can be particularized and summarized into a manageable list of categories, allowing companies to implement black swan project management. This empowers organizations to consider how they might avoid or mitigate those consequences.

Gary guided the webinar attendees through a seven-step process that is feasible for organizations of various sizes and circumstances. Keeping true to the premise of ruthless practicality, the process ends with management decisions about a short list of protective actions that might be undertaken to improve organizational resilience and black swan project management.

If you were unable to attend the webinar or would like to view it again, a recorded version is available here.  

The next Aclaimant Knowledge Network webinar will focus on improving risk competence within your organization and will be held on April 15. The webinar will be delivered by Princess Galloway of Castle Risk Management. Princess is not only an expert in organizational training, but also a deeply experienced risk management professional who has additionally led process improvement and human resource functions for large organizations. You can sign up for the webinar here. At a time when risk management is at the forefront of every organization, now is a compelling time to consider how to expand risk management practices beyond a handful of specialists.